Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 24 Mar 1992

Vol. 417 No. 5

Written Answers. - Imprisonment for Debt Non-Payment.

Richard Bruton

Ceist:

33 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Justice whether he intends to introduce legislation to end imprisonment for non-payment of civil debts and to provide alternative penalties and procedures for failure to comply with court orders for payment of such debts.

Seán Barrett

Ceist:

55 Mr. S. Barrett asked the Minister for Justice if he intends amending existing legislation to dispense with the powers vested in our courts to impose a jail sentence for the non-payment of financial debts due to banking and financial institutions and to replace this with the power of attachment of income and/or community service orders; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Alan Shatter

Ceist:

65 Mr. Shatter asked the Minister for Justice whether he intends to introduce legislation to end imprisonment for non-payment of civil debts and to provide alternative penalties for failure to comply with court orders for payment of such debts.

Minister for Justice (Mr. Flynn)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 33, 55 and 65 together.

Can I make it clear that no person may simply be committed to prison merely for the non-payment of a civil debt. Committal usually takes place only after other avenues to enforce the debt have beeen exhausted. There already exists a statutory mechanism in the Enforcement of Courts Orders Acts, 1926 and 1940 for the making and variation of instalment orders by the District Court in these cases.

At the end of the day a person may still be committed to prison for failure to comply with the terms of an instalment order made or varied by the court. But that final step may not be taken until it is shown to the satisfaction of the court that failure to pay on the part of the debtor was due to his wilful refusal or to his culpable neglect.

As I said in response to a written question on 10 March 1992, consideration is being given in my Department to the introduction of a system of attachment of earnings to secure payment of judgment debts generally as well as court fines. This would require legislation and any proposals which I may have in the matter will be announced in the usual way in due course.